Hair Your Greatest Asset

LOVELY, shining hair is one of a woman’s greatest beauty assets. Hair tends to be the body’s barometer indicating good health or the lack of it. The life-span of a hair can be anything from several months to several years, depending on how it is treated and how it is treated and how healthy the scalp and hair conditions are. It is seen that the average life of a hair is about five years. After that, the follicle the hair is growing from begins to shrink and the hair remains static until it drops out or is brushed out to be replaced a few months later by a new hair. The average adult head has around 1,20,000 to 1,50,000 hairs. Although a hundred or hairs may come out in a single day, your hair won’t become thinner. The trouble starts when the new hair does not form in the follicle, perhaps because there is inadequate blood supply, or because glandular or hormonal activity in the body is preventing healthy growth. Hair is a precious beauty asset, so it deserves good care. There are four types of hair-normal, greasy, dry and greasy dry. Normal hair is shiny yet not greasy, and fairly easy to manage. Greasy hair looks good for a day or two after shampooing, but then quickly becomes lank. Dry hair is difficult to control after shampooing, looks dull and has ends that are dry and split. Greasy dry hair is usually fairly long and the hair nearest the scalp is greasy while the ends are dry.

The beauty of hair, too, depends on good health. Since hair is made from a form a protein, a high protein diet can help to make it grow strong and healthy. The valuable vitamins of the B complex are important for hair health and one of the best sources of vitamin B is brewers’ yeast. Another good source of vitamin B is liver, so make sure your diet includes at least one liver meal a week. Minerals important for the health of your hair include iron, copper and iodine. Iron and copper are present in everyday foods like meat and leafy green vegetables. If you have greasy hair, banish fried, greasy and fatty foods from your diet, and concentrate on green vegetables and salads, meat, fresh fish, liver, eggs and cheese. For dry hair, add a little vegetable oil to the same basic diet, but avoid fried food, since it may cause skin troubles. Dandruff can be a problem for dry normal or greasy hair. A well-balanced diet and good general health are essential for getting rid of dandruff permanently.

Dandruff Cure

The greatest enemy of healthy hair is dandruff. This is a problem which worries any women, and experts reckon that one in every three suffer from it. If there is the slightest sign of this, deal with it without delay. Fortunately, these days there are a number of excellent preparations available in the market for curing it. Besides the antidandruff creams, lotions, oils and shampoos available in the market, there are many simple house hold remedies to fight dandruff described below:

(1) Mix two tablespoons of cosmetic vinegar and six tablespoons of hot water. Dab with cotton in to the scalp, parting the hair with a comb apply all over the scalp. Preferably it should be used a bed time. Tie a scarf over the hair to avoid straining the pillow. Next morning wash the hair with shampoo. After the hair is thoroughly cleansed pour over as a last rinse a mixture of three tablespoons of cosmetic vinegar and one cup of hot water. Then dry the hair thoroughly. This should be done twice a week for three months.

(2) Hot oil therapy is another method to cure dandruff. Massage hot oil in the scalp at bedtime. Next morning an hour before bath, rub lemon juice mixed with cosmetic vinegar (mix 1:2 ratio) in to the scalp. Give the hair a good wash with egg shampoo.

Egg shampoo is one of the oldest beauty recipes. Eggs are full of protein. Simply wash your hair with egg. Beat up one or two eggs with a cup of water and thoroughly massage this in to your wet hair for about five to ten minutes. Rinse off thoroughly and remember not to use hot water. There is another method to use egg shampoo. Simply beat one egg in a cup of water and mix to it 1 to 2 tablespoons shampoo. Do not worry about which shampoo has to be used.

As a last rinse use the juice of one lemon in a cup of hot water. Continue this complete treatment once a week for three months, then once a fortnight for the next two months.

(3) Give your hair a hundred stokes every night with a brush or comb. Remember that the root of each hair is the sebaceous gland that supplies oil to keep each hair is the sebaceous gland that supplies oil to keep each hair soft and gleaming. Press the bristles of the brush against the scalp to exercise and squeeze the tiny oil reservoirs. The oil sac automatically starts distributing natural scalp oil to each hair strand. Take the hair brush from the root of the hair to the very end of the hair so that the oil is carried to each individual hair tip. Avoid as far as possible wire bristles, because wire breaks the hair and gives it a ragged look. It is important that combs and brushes be kept clean. Add a few drops of ammonia to water and clean combs and brushes. Brushing moulds the hair, makes it more manageable and gives it a prettier gloss. Hair should be brushed or combed gently and lightly when wet as there is a danger of its being stretched and weakened.

(4) Give your hair a hot steam bath. Massage hot oil with a hot damp towel and leave it on the head like a turban so that the steam can fight dandruff. You may use two towels for this purpose.

(5) Here is another beauty tip for your hair. After giving your hair a good wash, boil five teaspoons of dried used tea leaves in lime water and use it as a last rinse after shampoo. This gives the hair a lustrous shine and provides nourishment too.